We started setting a 20 minute timer for the heavy stuff at my old club. Once it dings, we drop the deep dive and just say if we liked the book or not. It keeps the vibe from getting too heavy but still lets people get their thoughts out.
Yeah but that's the whole POINT of a book club Dylan, it's NOT "just" anything. Getting into the villain's backstory like we did makes you see the whole theme differently. We were arguing if his childhood excuse actually justifies the bad stuff later, and it changes how you read every single choice he makes.